Whanganui, Ruapehu and Rangitīkei councils move towards joint water entity

Stormwater, drinking water and wastewater infrastructure for the three districts could be controlled by a single entity.

Future delivery of Whanganui water services looks likely to come from a three-council entity.

The Whanganui and Rangitīkei district councils have already signalled their preference for the model, with Ruapehu council staff to recommend following suit at a meeting on Wednesday, February 26.

As part of the Government’s Local Water Done Well legislation, councils must submit a Water Services Delivery Plan (WSDP) – individually or jointly – by September 3.

Public consultation in Whanganui, with the three-council entity as the preferred option, runs for a month from March 14.

Council hearings take place on May 1, with deliberations on May 20.

The council will adopt its WSDP at a meeting on June 26.

A council-controlled organisation (CCO) will be formed if the preferred model is signed off in all three districts.

Whanganui District Council Three Waters transition manager Kathryn Stewart told councillors last week there was sufficient information “robust enough” to consult the community.

“That is not to say that as we go through the process and get more into the different phases of work, that more information won’t come to light,” she said.

“If it does, we will bring it back to [the council] and explain its significance.

“At the moment, I think we’re in good shape.”

The new entity would be in charge of stormwater, wastewater and drinking water infrastructure.

Ruapehu Mayor Weston Kirton says there seems to be "harmony" between the districts.

In December, Stewart said total waters debt was about $90 million for Whanganui (18,000 residential ratepayers) and $40m for both Ruapehu and Rangitīkei (about 5000 residential ratepayers each).

According to the 2023 Census, the Rangitīkei District has 15,663 residents, with Ruapehu at 13,095 and Whanganui at 47,619.

A draft public consultation form will be presented to Ruapehu district councillors on February 26.

It says a three-council CCO is preferred as it has the lowest cost for ratepayers, an alignment with regional relationships and catchments, and the maximum financial capacity to meet drinking water and wastewater standards.

Two other options – a stand-alone business unit model and a Ruapehu-only CCO – will also be provided as a part of the consultation.

Ruapehu Mayor Weston Kirton said there seemed to be harmony at a recent meeting in Ohakune between councillors and officers from each district.

“We have a lot in common,” he said.

“I think we will present a pretty robust arrangement to the public that ticks boxes as far as the Government is concerned.”

Councils going it alone would have to “jump through a lot more hoops”, he said.

“If you’re in serious debt, you wouldn’t have the headroom to carry out the huge water projects further down the track – in five or 10 years.”

In Rangitīkei, the two other options will be a CCO with all seven councils in the Manawatū-Whanganui region or an enhanced status quo.

Its draft consultation document says the seven-council approach was not practicable because other councils had not chosen it as their preferred option.

“We have included this model for completeness and comparison,” it said.

Last December, Rangitīkei Mayor Andy Watson said his council was small and needed to be “smart and realistic about how we move forward”.

“The long-term sustainability of partnership with other councils cannot be underestimated,” he said.

Stewart said consultation documents for Whanganui would be brought to the council in early March.

Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present, his focus is local government, primarily Whanganui District Council.